This relates to mitigating interference in electronic devices such as wireless electronic devices.
Electronic devices such as computers are subject to platform noise. Internal system circuitry, such as circuitry associated with memory systems, hard drive and optical drive systems, and graphics systems can produce signals with frequencies that interfere with the operation of other circuits. These interference signals may, for example, have radio-frequency (RF) components that fall within the bands associated with wireless transceiver circuitry such as Bluetooth® or wireless local area network (WLAN) circuitry in a wireless electronic device.
The presence of interference from RF noise detrimentally affects device performance. From a user perspective, interference can result in elevated packet error rates, decreased wireless range, and reduced data rates.
The severity of platform noise may vary based on a number of factors, such as operating band (2.4 GHz or 5 GHz), antenna system type, and electronic device geometry.
Noise generated by traffic on a digital bus such as Peripheral Component Interconnect Express (PCIe) traffic on a PCIe bus can be particularly problematic for wireless communications such as wireless local area network and Bluetooth® communications, because PCIe traffic can affect both the 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz communications bands. Interference can become more pronounced in devices such as portable computers when the lids of the portable computers are closed. This is because closing the lid of the portable computer can cause an antenna in the lid to move closer to PCIe noise sources. The increase in interference that results from closing the lid of a portable computer is particularly undesirable for users who want to operate their computers in a closed configuration while using an external display.
It would therefore be desirable to be able to mitigate the impact of radio-frequency interference in electronic devices.